obama wants to see it go up. the senate republicans will insist that it stays at its current rate. this is what happens when you make deals with very little time to spare. you basically force your respective party forces to swallow what you give him. >> thank you. we'll be back in a moment. this is "hardball" the place for politics. this is flo. i need you. i feel so alone. but you're not alone. i knew you'd come. like i could stay away. you know i can't do this without you. you'll never have to. you're always there for me. shh! i'll get you a rental car. i could also use an umbrella. fall in love with progressive's claims service. >>> welcome back to "hardball." what will a deal look like, if there is one, and who's going to wind up giving up more on the tax cuts for wealthy americans. harry reid says $250,000 is a threshold, but that may not hold. joining me now, josh green. josh, for the markets, for the business community, whether it's 250,000, i know it's a big deal for politicians, but 250, 400, 500,000, is there any real difference? >> absolutely none. the business community